Recent content by dienekes88

Oh interesting setup. I would probably just cold call people. Best way to do it is to find someone who publishes a decent amount and also routinely has residents and students as a co-author. Moreover... the busier and more senior the person is, the less able they are to spend time with you and...

Pretty straightforward. 1. Be a strong student: AOA, clinical grades, etc. 2. Get good scores 3. Research: 1 first author and a couple middle authorships is probably good enough 4. Good letters/Have people who will get on the phone to call for you 5. Do away rotations. This should go without...

Don't tell general surgery programs you are dual applying. Consider not applying to both kinds of programs at the same institution. It's probably true that older forms of general surgery were good preparation for cardiac surgery. But modern general surgery has such a large laparoscopic...

Can you have a life? Life is how you define it. Also, don't discount the value of work fulfillment. As an example, it seems like emergency medicine has a ton of time out of the hospital but also reports a lot of burnout. I have to suspect that it's because people go into EM because they want...

I have gotten so accustomed to my loupes that I'll even wear them for a sternal wire removal.

Agree. The things you think are "important" when you're a student or junior resident may not seem as important to you when you're out of fellowship, starting a family, etc.

Interesting question. Agree with everyone else insomuch that in the zombie apocalypse, I doubt anyone is committing the resources to doing an acute type A aortic dissection, and moreover I'm not sure it makes sense for a psychiatrist to do it. Seeing that this scenario is so far fetched... I...

Established. The case numbers may be high, but are those faculty used to teaching and taking residents through cases?

Not that SDN is going to change this, but you have to wonder if this artificial construct is even a useful way to test people. 1. Felt okay going in. More concerned about the timing as I knew I was going to feel rushed, and in the heat of the moment I would forget some details. 2. Didn't feel...

Yeah. Vision varies greatly. I know people who do coronary surgery with regular glasses and others who wear 4.0 loupes. I mostly wear 2.5s and sometimes 3.5s.

In a word. Yes. I remember getting confused about just the rotation requirements during my first clerkship. I fell flat on my face the first time I presented on rounds. It happens again. And again. And again. Because that's how you grow. And if it doesn't happen... then you may be doing it...

General surgery is tough, but I wouldn't say its the roughest residency. General surgery residents enjoy the badge of honor, and like to promote the concept that gen surg residency is unbearable, because it is something to bond with each other over. In many respects, I support this. Having said...

Oddly enough, I got the recommendation not to do SESATS. In terms of the kinds of questions, the in-service exam is closer in format. The SESATS questions are pretty educational, but primarily if you already know a bit about what's going on. TSRA review of Cardiothoracic Surgery is a good...

It takes two to tango. It sounds like they're bullies. However, it also sounds like there are elements of your behavior that can be easily misinterpreted. Once a narrative has developed, it's hard to break it. Little things like muttering to yourself may help you, but it won't be viewed...

Unfortunate that the students weren't included. Having said that, you have to recognize that people are in very different life situations. One attending might have a partner who stays at home with 3 kids + nanny in a non-procedural specialty with $350,000 debt. Another attending might be dual...